Archive for the ‘acceptance’ Category

by Vikas Chawla
One of the five pillars of knowledge that is taught in the Art of Living Course is “Acceptance”, i.e. “Accept people and situations as they are”. Over the years that I have taught the course I have encountered various arguments about how it is very tough and more easily said than done. I want the readers to think about this a little differently. This whole path is about self realization, so let us remove “others” from this equation of Acceptance. Let us turn the question inwards and rephrase it as “Accept ourselves as we are”. Does it become any easier?

in Switzerland

I think Guruji does not talk about this on the “Art of Living Course” since it is the more difficult thing to do. We know each and every minute detail about ourselves and there is no escaping any of it. No matter how hard we try, we cannot run away from our own self. We are great at finding faults with others and even more proficient at constantly judging our own deficiencies. Our mind is filled with regrets with the things we should have done or should not have done. This is where knowledge is such a blessing. Guruji has so beautifully stated that “Think about the past as destiny and the future as free will “. If we can apply this simple mantra it will help us to drop the regrets and focus 100% on the future.

Meditation is an inward journey, moving towards the source, closer to the self. How can we move towards something that we do not like? If you want to venture in the sphere of meditation and want to become a proficient meditator, the key mantra is “Accept yourself as you are”.

In the “Art of Silence” Course we are taught on how the emotions are linked to sensations in the body. The negative emotions that are specified are lack of interest, lust, greed, jealousy, fear, hate and anger. How about “guilt”? Where does guilt fit into the picture?

Guilt consumes the whole system and thus there is no sensation in any particular portion of the body. It has been used by all religions very proficiently (some more than others) to manipulate the followers of the religion. Guilt is the single most powerful emotion that takes us away from own self and is the greatest impediment to meditation.

Oh Come On! Let us not start feeling guilty about experiencing guilt. If you have listened to Ashtavakra Gita, there are a few great tapes, “You are not the doer”, “Storm of emotions” and others that can help. Guilt is all about something that has happened in the past and you did not intend to do. If we can learn from our mistakes, see it as a happening and surrender. That is all we can do.

If you are a seeker and want to dive deep inside yourself, surrender the past and embrace yourself with love, care and acceptance. It is a beautiful journey 🙂